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Sonic The Hedgehog 4 – Episode II

Oh, for fuck’s sake… Do I have to? I’m only going to get set upon by rampant fanboys for hating…

Sonic 4 – Episode 1: Whilst there were some glowing reviews out there, claiming the game was some kind of “magnificent return to form”, many of the more hardcore fans of Sonic’s original Mega Drive outings didn’t really like it. Me included.

It didn’t play like the classic games, it felt horribly rushed, and it was clearly apparent that Sega had no fucking clue how to appease those classic fans. “This is Sonic 4 as you truly imagined it”, said Ken Balough, Sega PR gibbon. No Ken. No it wasn’t.

One of the main issues that Sega didn’t seem to understand was that there is a specific momentum, a weight, to the way Classic Sonic controlled.

“Physics” – It’s a word that’s echoed down the halls of Sega ever since. Sega claimed Classic Sonic would have correct physics on Sonic Generations, but it was only an approximation, made worse by being stuck in an engine that just wasn’t built for that type of play in mind. I didn’t like that, either.

So now I step forward with apprehension to review Sonic 4: Episode 2. Yet again, Sega are claiming “they’ve done it right this time”. I’ll be the judge of that…

Definitely not Aquatic Ruin Zone - There's a castle in the background.

Firstly – The presentation. There is no doubt that far more time and effort has been put into making this game look nice. The game is now totally rendered in 2.5D as opposed to the 3D sprites/badly tiled 2D Map in Episode I, and makes the game look far less of a cheapy rush-job.

Sadly the developers still don’t much originality in their veins, though. The level designs are heavily borrowed from earlier Sonic games, however some of the levels now feel like a cross between 2 classic levels or have a few extra features in them (For example; the bonus stages are pretty much Sonic 2’s, but with the added bonus of being able to boost! Isn’t that great!), which I guess changes things up a bit and makes it feel a bit more “original”.

It’s still a bit poor for something that’s supposed to be a continuation of a series, and not a remake/reboot. Whilst the Sonic series has always had repeating level themes, they always felt fresh and not direct rip offs of levels from previous games.

Definitely not Ice Cap Zone - There's a rollercoaster in the background.

The music is still a mish-mash of synth instruments with drumbeats sampled from the Mega Drive, in an attempt to sound “retro”. It’s an acquired taste, I guess. Sometimes it sounds fine, other times it sounds like a strangled cat.

But who cares about things like presentation, hey? It’s the gameplay that matters.

First the physics. MUCH better. Sonic has his weight back. Letting go of the pad no longer makes Sonic grind to a halt, and the jumping and rolling feel much more natural. (Edit: This does not mean this is “perfect” by any stretch of the imagination, see the comments)

Speaking of (dead) weight , he’s got that fucking fox in tow again, and blow me if he doesn’t actually turn out to be useful – there are now a handful of “tag-team” moves you can do with Tails to get you past certain areas in the game.

I liked that, it was a new feature that fitted the gameplay style, unlike the homing attack which should never have been added to a 2D Sonic game as it reduces any timing and skill involved in many platforming situations. Sadly it’s still there.

Another piece of good news is despite the level rehashing, this time the bosses are actually original. The bad news is a couple of them are a might confusing and will probably lead to a couple of cheap deaths.

Definitely not Oil Ocean Zone - There's no oil at the bottom of the map!

Now my main gripe: All the physics in the world don’t matter if the level design is atrocious, and S4EII’s level design is (with a few exceptions) just as bad as the first. There’s still that placement of near endless booster/spring chains that take control out of your hands (usually followed by a chain of Bubbles for that little bit of no-skill lock-on attack fun!), and now we’ve got some really horrible underwater levels which can be damn frustrating at times

Although I haven’t witnessed it myself, I’ve also been told Tails can now steal your fucking air bubblestoo if you don’t watch out, why the fuck would they add that in the game? He’s supposed to help, not fucking hinder you. Imagine the scene:

All in all Sonic 4 Episode II is an improved game over the first. Sega have managed to claw their way from shit to average. Does it wash away the bad taste from the last episode? No, some of that taste is still there, some of it by design. Is it something you’ll be able to go back to time and time again? I don’t think so. Is it worth rushing to your digital distributor of choice and purchasing? Probably not… It’ll be in a PSN/Steam/XBLA sale at some point.

Note: Owners of Episode I & II, on the same format, will get the additional option of playing as Metal Sonic in Episode I.

As I have each episode on a different format, I’m afraid I haven’t played this so can’t comment on if playing as a different character in Episode I magically makes it less shit. It probably doesn’t though

Discussion (3) ¬

It’s a vast improvement over Episode 1, but bar the Sonic 2006 shambles, S4 Episode 1 was Sonic’s lowest point for me so even a below average game which incidentally, Episode 2 is, would be an improvement.

The physics are closer but certainly not right. Holding jump when you bounce from an enemy/TV power up doesn’t grant you any extra lift and what the fuck’s up with the rolling physics?

If you roll down a hill, you don’t pick up any momentum. This was a vital mechanic and was the way I used to tackle any curves/bends in the floors. It is my way of play and I can’t adapt to this change after 20 years of use. You’re now forced to run normally through the fast bits which frequently sees you running head first into enemies and losing rings.

I have both Episode 1 & 2 on the 360 so I got to play Episode Metal. Unless I’ve misinterpreted Sega’s press release you can’t play the entirety of Episode 1 with Metal Sonic. All you get is a 4 act section to play that’s separate from Episode 2 completely.

It’s been tacked on to supposedly bridge the gap and explain how Metal Sonic arrived from Sonic CD into Sonic 4 Episode 2.

Guess what, they’ve managed fuck this up this timeline.

They’ve got the levels out of order which shows that Sega really don’t know/care what they’re doing with sonic.

Act 2 in the Metal Sonic section is Sandopolis from Sonic & Knuckles.
Act 3 is Carnival Night zone from Sonic 3.
Seeing as S&K is a continuation of Sonic 3 this should be the other way around.

Overall, I predict most folk will probably like this one and it’s certainly a step in the right direction. If Sega keep improving the physics, bit by bit, we might get a proper-feeling Sonic game at some point.

It’s ridiculously overpriced at 1200 points though. I’m sure Sega hinted it would be 800 at some point?

The Android version is only about a fiver so why are Xbox live/PSN using getting ripped off?

I can’t remember a single time Tails ever stole bubbles on the Mega Drive games, man. Not one… And it’s not like I’m one of those people that hasn’t played those games in 15 years. Yet I’ve seen a fair few complaints about it now, and I’ve witnessed it myself since.

Maybe it’s because he sticks so close to you when you stand still instead of a couple of feet behind like he used to? Fuck knows.

The rolling IS better than before, at least you don’t grind to a halt the way you did in Ep. I… But you are right, you still don’t pick up anywhere near the speed the way you used to.

It seems to take far too long to gain any speed on a slope before you’ve ended up at the bottom of it. but then again, the level design is peppered with those fucking boosters so there isn’t many places to do your own rolling anyway. I gave up trying, aside from doing it in a few loops.

I completely forgot to mention the return of fixed height bouncing. It’s not as forced as Generations, but holding the button after coming off a higher platform (as shown here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1hHSp9IhBQg ) still doesn’t work, but yet again there’s not many opportunities to do things like that anyway because the level design is so fucking horrible.

90's Arcade Racer - Gameplay vid: [tube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M3PlyYWhhZE#t=23[/tube]
I imagine Mentski is out and about or stuck playing Elite Dangerous as I'm guessing he would have put this ...